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Understanding VoIP Security

Before the implementation of VoIP, security for telephone calls was never a high priority. To prevent eavesdropping, a business executive simply went into a private room. Electronic eavesdropping was always possible of course, but required physical access to the wires. This sort of snooping was difficult to carry out and the risk of getting caught was high. It did happen, of course—but it was infrequent.

Voice over Internet Protocol has given businesses many new features and functions, but VoIP security has also become an issue. With security now at the forefront of telephony, IT managers must pay closer attention to their phone networks. Because VoIP travels over the public Internet, it is therefore theoretically vulnerable to the same risks as any other Internet transmission. In addition, it would be a lot easier to intercept a VoIP phone call from a remote location, since no physical access to wires is necessary.

VoIP Security

The virtual PBX solution functions just like a standard PBX. Building on business VoIP technology, the virtual PBX establishes a VoIP connection with the hosted PBX center off-site. With a standard on-premises PBX, calls come into the PBX and are then routed to various extensions as needed. A virtual PBX works the same way, except that the calls actually first come into the off-site location instead of the on-premises PBX. They are then routed in the same manner to each extension. There is no noticeable delay, and it works exactly the same.

VoIP security is still in its early stages, and awareness is still minimal. If sensitive phone calls are being made however, such as in the case of government or defense-related offices, encryption may need to be used. The risks are evident. If an attacker were, for example, to gain access to the VoIP server, they could access stored conversations, voice messages, or possibly even launch a denial-of-service attack that would cause the entire phone system to go down. Calls could also be fraudulently redirected, allowing a thief to masquerade as a legitimate company, possibly convincing callers to reveal sensitive information.

It must also be taken into account that VoIP often operates on a converged network, which transmits both voice and data over the same pipe. This represents a great convenience and a major savings, but at the same time, reinforces the need for VoIP security.

There are many different approaches to VoIP security, starting with the firewall; ideally the firewall should run on a hardened operating system that does not suffer from the same vulnerabilities as most commercial operating systems. Most modern firewalls are VoIP-aware, but it makes sense to ensure that your firewall can recognize VoIP packets. Another VoIP security approach uses a VoIP proxy, but this does require a separate proxy to exist behind the firewall, and does add some administrative overhead. The VoIP-aware firewall presents a more efficient solution in most cases.

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